Pogona is complete!

I finished my most beautiful yarn project so far!  It was special yarn that Justin got for me from the shop hop in April.  I made Stephen West's Pogona with it.  I love the combination of pink and orange with some sparkle.  It seemed to take an eternity, but was worth it in the end.  I started it on May 11 and just finished it on Thursday this week.   Now for blocking.....Can't get enough of Zen Yarn Garden Glitter Sock Yarn.

Spectacular South Dakota

We had a blast in South Dakota.  I thought it would be fun, but the beauty we witnessed far surpassed my expectations.  We spent nine days and the kids did great in the car.  Custer State Park was our favorite place.  We were lucky enough to stay at Sylvan Lake Lodge.  Lots of walks around the lake, hikes in the woods, and many wildlife views on the wildlife loop.  We had our first horseback ride and the kids have not stopped talking about it since.  We all enjoyed seeing the mammoth dig site and the amazing wind cave.  There is so much to see that we can't wait to go back.

Our Little Dancer

Kate just had her first and last dance recital.  She enjoyed it and did a great job as part of "Mother Goose".  She looks cute as can be, but has said that this was her try at dance.  It was too much time.  The recital day lasted 10 hours for two recital, so we are happy this is her last recital.  She is excited to get her first trophy and looks forward to focusing on piano and trying swimming.

House full of Instruments

The spring Tuba exodus has begun.  I have four naked Tubas, a baritone, two tenor saxes and a french horn in my parlor.  I had to make sure to leave a path to the piano for Alex because today is his last piano lesson.  Both kids want desperately to try the Tuba.  I am putting it off until the weekend because once they start, they won't want to stop.  My arms are sore from moving instruments already.  I need to work out daily to prepare for five long days of instrument cleaning next week.  I can almost smell the mix of suntan lotion and vinegar now.

It is hard to believe that another school year is coming to an end.  I hope our summer break is filled with picnics and cool adventures to new places.  There will be books to read and lots and lots of knitting!

Alex the sleepwalker

It seems that I have passed on my skills of sleepwalking to Alex.  He has been doing it a lot this weekend.  He doesn't turn on any lights, just walks around in the dark and appears of nowhere.  Sometimes he will say a few words, but most of the time you can only get yes or no answers.  If you ask him a math question he will answer it and is almost always right.  That is so funny, I guess that means he is so good at math that he can do it in his sleep.

I finally finished my rainbow shawl!  It took about two weeks , but seemed like forever.  I am so glad that it is done and can't wait for the next project.  I have come to the realization that I have cast on two more shawls right now and might need to alternate some quicker projects along with them.  I got some great sweater ideas from the classes that I took this weekend.  My list of favorites to make is getting longer by the minute!

Alex discovers fishing

Alex has discovered fishing.  He is so excited and would be perfectly satisfied to fish daily.  He caught one fish the first day, then seven and now fourteen.  He did think that it would be a good idea to keep the fish in our fishtank, but we convinced him that they would grow better in the lake and then he could catch them again.  Grandpa got him his own pole and tackle box.  So he passed his first fishing pole down to Kate.  I think we have the beginning of a fun summer past time. 

Easter 2012

We tried to dye our own easter eggs with natural dyes this year.  We tried tumeric, cabbage, grape juice, blueberry juice and paprika.  The paprika was yucky.  It stuck to the eggs and was icky.  The cabbage made for some nice purple, but the tumeric was our favorite.

It was good fun, but unfortunately we left the eggs out to dry and forgot to put them in the fridge.  So they were not edible.  Bummer!

Our best friend Max

We lost our Max today.  It is hard to say goodbye.  He was a big part of our family.  We will have to get used to a new stillness at home.  No more barking at the front door when someone is walking by.  No more greetings when we come home from work and school.  I will miss the doggie snuggling the most.  Max was a great snuggler.  He was not a perfect dog, he barked a lot and wasn't the greatest walker due to the barking.  He did not like water of any kind and the diabetis was hard on him and us.  We had a great 12 years together and no dog will ever take his place in our hearts.  We are all full of tears but have made a special paw print and framed it along with his collar and a great picture we took of him this fall.  It seems that there are never enough memories.  I occasionally find funny things like a chewed up pen or a ball stashed in a strange spot.  It is comforting and sad to find memories every where I look.